Dolphus Raymond is a white man in Maycomb who seems to prefer living with the blacks. In fact he has children with a black woman. This is quite unheard of in a town as steeped in prejudice and racism as Maycomb, all the more so as Raymond is actually from a wealthy family. Scout and Jem often see him hovering around, when he always appears drunk. Later, however, the children make a startling discovery. He does not drink alcohol at all, he only pretends to. This is to give people a reason for his unconventional behaviour in living with a black woman - they just put it down to his drinking.

Dolphus Raymond provides an example of a character in Maycomb who refuses to live according to its strict code of conduct and racial segregation. However, although he is able to go against this code, he is not really capable of outright confrontation with society; he has to provide a cover, and, as far as we are shown, he only confides his secret to children.